T-34 - USSR: boeken - historie, typen en techniek (2/2)

The T-34 was the most influential tank design of World War 2. When first introduced into combat in the summer of 1941, it represented a revolutionary leap forward in tank design. Its firepower, armour protection and mobility were superior to that of any other medium tank of the period. This superiority did not last long. While the T-34 underwent a series of incremental improvements during 1943, it was being surpassed by new German tank designs, most notably the Panther.

This title traces the life of the original T-34 through all its difficulties to eventual success.

Contents: Design and Development - Operational History - The German reaction - the Panther - The Battle of the Factories - Universal Tank - Inside the T-34 - Variants.

Robert A Forczyk provides a riveting and intense description of the design and development of these two deadly opponents, the Panther and the T-34, analyzing their strengths and weaknesses and describing their tactics, weaponry and training. Moreover he gives an insight into the lives of the tank crews themselves, who were caught up in the largest land conflict of World War II, in some of the most important engagements in the history of warfare.
Innovative digital artwork and first-person perspectives place the reader in the midst of a duel between the titans of the Soviet and German armed forced in a ruthless and relentless death match that would determine the war on the Eastern Front and, indeed, the fate of Nazi Germany.

Contents: Introduction - Chronology - Design and development - The Strategic Situation - Technical Specifications - The Combatants - Combat - Statistics and analysis - Aftermath - Bibliography.

In the summer of 1944, the Red Army staged a massive armoured assault up the Karelian Isthmus with the intent of eliminating any remaining German and Finnish forces facing the Leningrad region.
Most of the Soviet units sent into Finland were new to the region, moving mainly from the fighting in the Leningrad area. As a result, some had the latest types of Soviet equipment including the new T-34-85 tank, fielded alongside the older T-34-76.

Germany refused to sell the Finns new tanks without a reinforced military alliance, but in 1943 began selling them a few dozen StuG III assault guns. This made the StuG III battalion the most modern and powerful element of the Finnish armoured division, and it saw very extensive combat in the June-July summer battles.
Featuring specially commissioned artwork and an array of archive photographs, this is the absorbing story of the parts played by Soviet and Finnish armour in the epic battles in Finland during June and July 1944.

The T-34-85 tank is one of those rare weapons that have remained in service for more than half a century. First introduced in 1944, it has seen combat in nearly every corner of the globe.
Steven Zaloga and Jim Kinnear look at this long-serving tank at length. Although long obsolete in Europe, it has proven a reliable and potent weapon in many Third World conflicts, and is still in service with more than a dozen armies around the world.

Contents: Design and Development - Operational History - Variants - Late-War Production Improvements - Inside the T-34-85 - Post-War Modifications - Technical Support Variants - T-34-85 in Post-War Combat.

The Russian T-34 was possibly the best medium tank of World War Two, and was a major influence on all subsequent tank designs. It served in huge numbers with the Soviet Army and its allies, and was also used by their enemies!

This book continues the story of the T-34-85, this time in post-war service. Information is included about post-war production in the USSR, and licensed versions made in Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia and Poland.
A brief summary of the T-34's involvement in conflicts and active service up to 2016 is given.

The most important part of the book describes the camouflage and markings of T-34-85s in service around the world. There are more than 40 especially commissioned colour profiles, and over 150 black-and-white and colour photographs, many never previously published.

The Soviet T-34 medium tank was one of the most famous and effective fighting vehicles of the Second World War. Along with the German Tiger and the American Sherman, it was a landmark in tank design that changed the course of the conflict.

Much has been written about the technical history of the tank and the vital part it played in the huge tank battles on the Eastern Front, but less has been said about the men who went to war in the T-34 - who lived, fought and sometimes died in these remarkable machines.

This pioneering book, which is based on extensive interviews with tank crews, records their experiences and offers a compelling inside view of armoured warfare in the mid-twentieth century.

A hotly-debated topic amongst tank buffs is of the relative merits of the Soviet and American tanks of World War II. Using recently revealed documents, Steven Zaloga sheds light on the crucial tank battles of the Korean War as the rival superpowers' finest tanks battled for supremacy.
The Soviet-equipped North Korean Peoples Army initially dominated the battlefield with the seemingly unstoppable T34-85. As US tank battalions hastily arrived throughout the late summer and early autumn of 1950, the M26 Pershing took the fight to North Korea with increasing success.

Contents: Introduction - Design and development - Technical Specifications - The Combatants - Combat - Statistics and Analysis - Conclusion - Further Reading.